Alibaba Group has announced it has taken full control of Ele.me, a leading online food delivery and local services platform in China.
The transaction values Ele.me at around $9.5 billion. Prior to taking control of the business, Alibaba held a minority stake in Ele.me, alongside its affiliate Ant Small and Micro Financial Services Group Co., Ltd.
In a statement, Alibaba said that the acquisition will 'deepen Ele.me's integration into Alibaba's ecosystem' and advance Alibaba's New Retail strategy, under which the operator is seeking to provide a seamless online and offline consumer experience.
Alibaba Ecosystem
"We are excited for Ele.me to become a part of the Alibaba ecosystem," said Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba Group. "Under the leadership of its founder and management team, Ele.me has achieved leading market share in China's online food delivery and local services sector.
"Our shared belief that New Retail will create more value for customers and merchants has brought us together. Looking forward, Ele.me can leverage Alibaba's infrastructure in commerce and find new synergies with Alibaba's diverse businesses to add further momentum to the New Retail initiative."
The acquisition compliments Koubei, Alibaba's existing affiliated local services platform, the group said.
"This acquisition shows that we have built Ele.me into one of China's most valuable internet businesses," commented Zhang Xuhao, founder of Ele.me.
"Our customers, merchants and partners will benefit from our further integration into the Alibaba family. We share the same strategic vision that New Retail has a bright future and being part of Alibaba's ecosystem will take Ele.me's growth to a new level."
Amazon Of The East
It also underscores Alibaba's evolution into the 'Amazon of the East', as this infographic from 16best.net illustrates.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
